I just got my new (old) H17. Sure enough, got 2 wing pockets that leak. One in front I can fix by fiber-glassing from inside. The one in the back have no access from inside without ripping the the top of the hall. Here is what I was thinking doing:1. Gel coat the crack. This is very limited in thickness of the repair. Else, the wing tube will not fit.

Check the May/June 2006 Hotline for how to repair the wing tubes. The article provides comprehensive instructions for fixing a broken wing tube from the outside of the hull.

Simply gelcoating the crack will not solve the problem. Gelcoat has very little strength, so it will almost certainly just crack if you don't reinforce with glass fibers.

Do NOT put grease in the tube. This will attract dirt and sand and make a huge mess, especially evertime you pull out the greasy wing.

I've done the duct tape thing around the wing tube/socket. It definitely helps to keep water out, but it's messy and you have to do it everytime you sail. If you fix the wing socket properly, there's no need to do this.

While the May/June 2006 Hotline definitely has great info I would not go so far as to call it comprehensive especially if you have never done any of this before. I am facing the exact same repair as you on all 4 pockets and while the information in that article in invaluable I do not feel like it tells me everything I need to know.

I would really like to hear some in-depth info from people here who have done it before. I am all about do it yourself but I have never done fiberglass work or gelcoat work before. I have research online and read pretty much every this old hobie article and others so I fell I have learned a lot but this repair is nothing like any of those.

For starters when adding glass inside the hull to the outside of the pocket how do I apply it?

Do I wrap it around like an ace bandage or lay it inline along the length of the tube?

Do I need to sand the the outside of the tube before laying in new fiberglass? If so How much?

The fiberglass tape will be impregnated with resin before I try to apply it to the outer part of the tube but do I need try to squeegee more thru it to get it o adhere to the old glass? This seems like it would be pretty tricky on the round tube of the pocket. Should I just try to get it in place and then with gloves on just massage all the resin into it?

When doing the inside I get that you need sand off the gelcoat with a drum sander and I assume you apply strips of impregnated tape lengthwise down the tube but again how to you promote good adhesion to the old glass? It is not like you can squeegee it in.

How to address the bottom of the pocket. All my tubes seem to drain pretty much all the way so I have to assume that I have leaks all the way down or at least at the bottom. How do get glass in there or do you just pool some epoxy down there?

How do you re-gelcoat the inside of the tube?

Some of you who have done it please speak up and share your knowledge. The Hobie article is good but i don't feel it is enough for this big of a job.

I have watched many of them but it is hard find anything specific to this.

As for the port if you don't have one that should not be a hard thing. Put where you can reach where you are working buy the port first and measure it before cutting anything

The hobie hotlines especially ones with the this old hobie section are a wealth of information. I compiled a PDF with all the helpfull repair bits but I don't dare distribute it as I don't want to get in trouble with anyones copywrite.

I compiled a PDF with all the helpfull repair bits but I don't dare distribute it as I don't want to get in trouble with anyones copywrite.

I appreciate your not distributing it. The Hobie Class Association of North America owns the copyright.

Most one-design sailing classes restrict their class magazine to members only. The Hobie Class is unique in that we allow open access to the magazine on-line. We would hope that you find enough value in it to join the class. There are a variety of membership options to suit any Hobie owner.

This may not be the best project for someone with little or no fiberglass experience. Working in tight spaces tends to make the job considerably more challenging. But to answer some of your questions-

Regarding sanding, you should always start any composite repair by sanding the surface you plan to bond/laminate to. Sanding helps to clean the surface and also increases the mechanical bond area. I typically use 100 grit paper to scuff/roughen the surface. You also want to do an acetone wipe after sanding. Once you've wiped with acetone, DO NOT touch the surface with bare hands or you'll contaminate it. Wear gloves to keep chemicals off your hands as well as to keep hand oils off of your repair.

I would definitely try to wrap the glass tape around the wing tube. This will provide support in the "hoop" direction and therefore prevent the tube from splitting lengthwise.

I would do a coat of resin around the tube prior to wrapping the tape. This will encourage the tape to stick to the tube where you want it to. You can also wet out the tape on a piece of cardboard or plastic prior to wrapping it around the tube. Then use a brush to work the resin into the glass while wrapping it around the tube. Pre-cut the tape and do a dry run before mixing any resin.

When working inside the hull, it's often very helpful to put a shop lamp inside the hull as well as to have a small mirror so you can see the entire work area. Sometimes taking the boat apart so you can put the hull on it's side or upside down also makes things much easier.

For the inside of the tube, I'd probaby use a brush with an extension to get the resin down into the tube. I'd also use a brush to apply the gelcoat inside the tube (or, more likely, not even worry about gelcoating inside the tube). If you decide to install a porthole and do a wrap around the outside of the tube, then you probably don't even need to do any work on the inside of the tube.

I compiled a PDF with all the helpfull repair bits but I don't dare distribute it as I don't want to get in trouble with anyones copywrite.

I appreciate your not distributing it. The Hobie Class Association of North America owns the copyright.

Most one-design sailing classes restrict their class magazine to members only. The Hobie Class is unique in that we allow open access to the magazine on-line. We would hope that you find enough value in it to join the class. There are a variety of membership options to suit any Hobie owner.

My primary cat is a Prindle 18, lol. I obtained this H17 for Free and for now once I have it going it will primarily be for my teenage boys to sail. However if I manage to drop a few pounds I may find myself sailing it more. I like that is simple and relatively easy to step the mast by yourself and I love the wings.

I am not a racer but there is a new Hobie fleet down in the southern end of Utah and my oldest may be going to school down there in a year or so. There may be chance he takes the Hobie 17 with him and sails with them a bit but I think mostly of their racing is in H16s.

As for my compilation I made for my self so I would have all the This old Hobie info in one easy place. I highly recommend that you guys put something like this together and make it available in the archive because in my opinion it is the most valuable long term information in the Hotline. Also is it just me or has there not been any new hotlines in a while. I'm still showing a 2010 issue as the latest.

As for my compilation I made for my self so I would have all the This old Hobie info in one easy place. I highly recommend that you guys put something like this together and make it available in the archive because in my opinion it is the most valuable long term information in the Hotline. Also is it just me or has there not been any new hotlines in a while. I'm still showing a 2010 issue as the latest.

+1 I think it would be great if something like this was put together and put up on the website with the full Hotline issues. I've been in the process of compiling one myself for all the issues that I would be glad to let the class post with the full issues if you want. I certainly understand why you don't want someone else posting/distributing your copyrighted material, however.